fictional stories of Muhammad as a magician for political purposes (loc 357)

2: Preventing Islamic rise

need I say more?

The purpose I show from emphasizing pre-colonial and pre-Islamic Orientalism is to represent how deeply rooted it is. This way, we come to terms with the justifications of horrific acts done by both sides.

How does the definition transition?

Ibn Khaldun

Untruth naturally afflicts historical information. There are various reasons that make this unavoidable. One of them is partisanship for opinions and schools.

Another reason why history is filled with falsities is because a historian is "ignorant of the various conditions arising civilizations.

Herodotus is attempting to close that branch and come up with knowledge on the subject; he is defining the Orient for the first time. He, however, ignores the traditions that had created the Egypt, and simply goes with the comparative.

The only real attempt at understanding their culture is a comparison to the gods, which sets up the problem for number 1. #

Focoult

Discourse

What Herodotus is constructing is not facts but knowledge, a set of understandings that will be used later on in life, so.

that sets limits upon and yet produces what one person is able to think or say or do in a given situation. It is what makes you think or produces what you say or think. It uses you as much as you use it.

Discourse is about the use of knowledge and ideas, including their influence on people, as much as the actual content or meaning of such ideas.

Impact- we can see that this transition can occur, and it led to very impactful justification

Persian war: receiving these cultures not as they are but as, for the benefit of the receiver, as the way they ought to be. Yet the Orientalist makes it his work to be always converting the Orient from something into something else: he does this for himself, for the sake of his culture; in some cases for what he believes is the sake of the Oriental”

The lack of historical contect.

Thesis- the works of Herodotus on describing the Orient had set in motion a change of definition in the word orientalism. While this precludes religious or colonial justifications, it is the underlying theme that connects the West's idea of the Orient.

The depiction of the orient from Herodotus

They used the ancient greek understanding of the orient and hijack, without the context that the greeks took the orient.

The context is the same

critical of persian empire

he talks a lot about how their despotics whereas the Greeks.

French jewel traveler: John Chardin: Second volume of the Persian.

If they wanted to go to persia, they would go to persia.

YOU HAVE TO SHOW HOW THEY READ XYZ TO READ BEFORE.

HE CAME WITH THESE PRECONCIEVED NOTION IN LATE 1600S

was widely read by Napolean officers.

How it made a comback

Printing press and translation made Herodotus more prevelant

Aldo Manuzio had a great impact in dispelling the notion that Herodotus was untrue.

They noted that no one in the 16th centruy can say without a doubt that He was a liar

Herodotus claims that the government of Persia was tyrannical and he perfers his better government of Athens

Put they could keep their kings

Taxes werent high

Had an incredible idea of mail

Was against religions

Zoroastrians was against slavery

Equality is a good thing. Evidence for this is the fact that while they were under tyrannicalrulers, the Athenians were no better in war than any of their neighbors, yet once they gotrid of their tyrants, they were by far the best of all. This, then, shows that while they wereoppressed, they were, as men working for a master, cowardly, but when they were freed,each one was eager to achieve for himself.